California moves forward with one of the nation's most stringent vaccine regulations
California's SB-277 bill, currently advancing in the state legislature, seeks to eliminate personal belief and religious exemptions for vaccinations required for K-12 school attendance, allowing only medically justified exemptions such as pre-existing disorders that pose risks from vaccines [1][3][5]. This means that all children entering public or private school must be fully vaccinated according to the state schedule, including boosters that may total up to 17 shots by the end of K-12 [1][3].
The implications for herd immunity are significant because SB-277 aims to increase immunization rates among school-aged children by closing loopholes that previously allowed vaccine refusal based on personal or religious beliefs. By restricting exemptions to medical reasons only, the law seeks to maintain a high level of vaccination coverage, which is critical to achieving herd immunity and preventing outbreaks of communicable diseases like measles, mumps, and whooping cough [1][5].
The legal challenges to SB-277 have mostly been unsuccessful, with courts affirming that states have a legitimate and compelling interest in protecting public health through vaccination requirements before school entry [1][3]. The law has been upheld as a rational exercise of the state's police powers to protect against communicable diseases, overriding claims that it unfairly impacts religious freedoms [1][3][5]. However, opponents continue to seek restoration of religious exemptions through court appeals [5].
In early 2015, California became the epicenter of a measles outbreak. According to the CDC, there were more cases of measles in January 2015 than in any one month in the past 20 years [6]. The measles outbreak in California spread in large part because of communities with large numbers of unvaccinated people [2]. This underscores the importance of SB-277 in ensuring high vaccination rates and preventing such outbreaks in the future.
The bill would allow only vaccinated children to attend public and private schools in California, potentially reaching the level of vaccination needed for "herd immunity" [1][5]. However, the article does not provide any information about the current status of the overtime exemption for computer software employees in California, or any potential impact of the law on these platforms or their workers.
California Governor has signed a law making it harder for employers to classify workers as independent contractors [4], which may have implications for gig economy workers, such as drivers for ridesharing companies, who are currently classified as independent contractors. The new law does not mention any specific platforms like Facebook, Messenger, Twitter, Pinterest, Linkedin, Whatsapp, or Email.
In summary, California's SB-277 bill reflects the state's proactive approach to preventing vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks through mandatory immunization for school children. The law is designed to improve vaccination rates and better support herd immunity, and legal precedent supports the state's authority to enforce such vaccination requirements despite opposition on religious or personal belief grounds.
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